The Czechoslovak Review/Volume 3/The Economic Strength of Slovakia
The Economic Strength of Slovakia
There are no official statistical figures of the wealth and natural resources of Slovakia, for this country of 54,000 square kilometers was merged in Hungary, and the Magyars did not want the world to know the natural riches of the country oppressed by them. The figures given below are compiled with much labor from the Hungarian official statistics and give a fairly accurate picture of the economic conditions in that unfortunate land.
The relative density of population in Slovakia in 62.3 per square kilometre. In the county of Nitra it is 77.7 inhabitants per square kilometre. According to the Magyar statistics in 1910 there was in Slovakia 69 percent Slovaks, 18.8 percent Magyars and 9.7 percent of Germans. Even in Budapest the Magyars had to admit the presences of 25,168 Slovaks; of course the real number was much larger. The productive soil of Slovakia was 93.8 percent of the entire area, and of that 40 percent was arable, 19.3 percent was meadow land and 34.5 was in forests. The number of farms and their division into great and small estates was as follows:
| Farms of | Their Number. |
No. in Percent. |
Percentage of area |
| 1 to 10 hectares | 149.554 | 50.07% | 6.2% |
| 10 to 100 hectares | 143.230 | 48.04% | 46.4% |
| 100 to 500 hectares | 2.185 | 0.75% | 15.4% |
| 500 to 500 hectaresor more” | .419 | 0.15% | 32% |
The total value of the crops in the 11 principal Slovak counties in 1901 was 342,218,237 crowns. The following table indicates the production of the chief crops:
| Quintals. | Value in Crowns. | ||
| Wheat | 1.771.125 | 34.813.108 | |
| Rye | 1.435.056 | 27.693.793 | |
| Barley | 3,064.710 | 58.292.584 | |
| Oats | 1.484.391 | 28.604.497 | |
| Potatoes | 13.888.986 | 35.652.288 | |
| Corn | 695.296 | 8.916.743 | |
| Other crops | 130.245.224 | ||
Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
342.218.237 | ||
Slovakia is therefore an agricultural country, but at the same time it is more industrial than the rest of Hungary. Among the Slovaks the number of persons making their living out of agriculture was 65.7 per cent; in the rest of Hungary 67.4 percent. Industrial and commercial workers among the Slovaks number 22.1 percent and in the rest of Hungary 20 percent.
The underground wealth of Slovakia contains minerals of all species. In 1905 the production of iron ore in Slovakia was 8,971,612 quintals, whereas all rest of the Kingdom of Hungary produced in that year 7,631,972 quintals.
At the same time half of this ore was exported, since the primitive state of the iron industry could not utilize all the ore at home. The production of iron in 1905 in Slovakia was 2,285.328 quintals valued at 18,721,249 crowns. Iron ore is mined in 30 districts and smeltered in 21 districts. The future of the iron industry in Slovakia is very promising since the country possesses rich strata of coal. Most of the Hungarian coal is found in Slovakia. In 1905 coal was mined in 16 districts and the production was 14,225,000 quintals of lignite. Even though the iron mills are not equipped with modern machinery, they pay large divid ends.
For the Czechoslovak State it is important that Slovakia has salt, which is completely lacking in the Czech lands. It has been under the old regime, a state monopoly and its production was 59,000 quintals, valued at 1,150,000 crowns.
The composition of the soil is very suitable for the manufacture of pottery; it has given rise in remote times to this industry, the products, of which are well-known to collectors of pottery. In 1900 there were 1326 persons in Slovakia working in 11 potteries. But since this branch of the industry is entirely Slovak, the Hungarian government favored the importation of foreign wares in order to ruin Slovak works. Thus in 1905 pottery ware was imported into Hungary to the value of 575,000 crowns.
Closely connected with this industry is the manufacture of excellent bricks. The number of brickyards grows from year to year. These are also three factories for the making of cement. Slovak glassware which was once famous and prosperous is decaying for the same reasons which apply to the manufacture of pottery, namely that the Magyar Government does not want Slovaks to get rich. In spite of that there are still glass-blowing establishments in 17 districts.
Another industry has spread into all the counties; that is the manufacture of paper. But modern paper mills are found only in 7 districts.
It is plain that a country like Slovakia with its splendid forests is sure to have an important lumber industry. In 1900 there were 12 factories for the manufacture of furniture, and numberless sawmills.
The manufacture of leather goods is also relatively prominent. In 1900 there were shops in 25 districts. A shoe factory in St'avnica employs 75 workmen.
Water mills that formerly were used everywhere foregrinding grain for the most part are replaced by steam mills. These modern flour mills are found in 16 districts and give work to 1021 workingmen.
There are 9 sugar mills with 7648 workmen which produce 1,372,322 quintals of sugars; in all Hungary the manufacture of sugar amounts to 2,604.576 quintals. Sugar is exported principally into the East Indies to the value of about 10 million crowns and to England, 4 million crowns.
Distilling of alcohol is an important industry; besides 1469 persons who make alcohol on a small scale there are 7 large distilleries. There are small breweries in all of the large towns and there are 7 large breweries.
Slovakia has even a chemical industry, although rather primitive. Enterprises of kind number 24 and of them the most important are two factories for the manufacture of dynamite and cartridges in Pressburg, where in 1900 there were employed 778 men. The figures that it was possible to gather as to the different branches of industry located in Slovakia have been grouped in a little table below. These enterprises number 83 and have a capital of 129,929 ,000 crowns.
| Industries. | No. of Companies. |
Capital in thousands of crowns. |
Profits. |
| Flour mills | 8 | 2.895 | 192.162 |
| Sugar mils | 5 | 9.200 | 884.148 |
| Breweries and Distilleries |
6 | 1.938 | 204.934 |
| Saw Mills | 5 | 752 | 36.666 |
| Coal Mines | 3 | 2.669.806 | |
| Iron Mines | 5 | 50.400 | 9.363.603 |
| Stone quarries | 2 | 174 | 22.767 |
| Monument Works | 7 | 1.540 | 317.958 |
| Tanneries | 1 | 1.000 | 84.839 |
| Oil Refineries | 2 | 5.200 | 1.128.177 |
| Paper Mills | 3 | 5.500 | 818.746 |
| Printing Establishments |
4 | 139 | 8.612 |
| Textile Mills | 5 | 14.930 | 1.955.636 |
| Chemical Industries |
2 | 8.000 | 2.347.620 |
| Power Houses | 9 | 3.206 | 143.319 |
| Watering Places | 8 | 1.732 | 58.682 |
| Gas Works | 1 | 120 | |
| Glass Works | 1 | 900 | 80.375 |
| Hotel Associations | 2 | 490 | 23.398 |
| Starch Works | 1 | 224 | |
| Canning Factories | 2 | 299 | 39.038 |
| Ammunition Works |
1 | 300 | 15.116 |
| Total: | 83 | 129.929 | 20.305.582 |
The economic effort of the Slovaks has encountered many obstacles; and the financial emancipation of the Slovaks is without doubt the most difficult problems of all. Although the first financial institution founded by the Slovaks goes back as far as 1845, it could not develop, for most of the banks founded by Slovaks have through government terroism fallen into the hands of the Magyars. That made the people averse to dabbling any more in finances, and between 1886 and 1895 not a single bank or financial establishment was founded. A new period opens in 1896 and extends to 1904; during that time the Slovaks have shown a rather live spirit of enterprise. A number of banks were founded and began to prosper in a satisfactory manner. Since that time the Slovaks have struggled man fully to free themselves of Magyar-German finances. They have succeeded, largely owing to the help of the Czech finance which looked upon it as its national duty to support the younger Slovak finances.
In 1900 there were 54 Slovak credit institutions; among them were 40 banks with 18 branches, their capital amounted to 9,538.067 crowns, their deposits were 48,270,453 crowns. The two most important banks are the Bank of Tatra, founded in 1886, with deposits of 10 million crowns, and the Credit Bank of Ružomberk, with a capital of 2 million crowns and deposits of 5 million.
Like Bohemia Slovakia is rich in mineral waters. The baths of Pišťany already enjoy international fame, although the Magyars claim them, just as the Germans claim the famous watering places of Bohemia, Karlsbad, Franzensbad and Marienbad.
This gives a rough sketch of the economic situation in Slovakia at the present time. It is plain that Slovakia is a rich country with a great future, and its underground wealth of minerals will transform it into one of the most industrial districts af all Europe. But it is necessary to bring capital into the country. Up to now the country was exploited by the Magyars and held down artificially to a low degree of economic and intellectual well-being. But the people are higly gifted and the precious gift of liberty will develop their talent, as it has done in America. The future of Slovakia is assured.
This work was published in 1919 and is anonymous or pseudonymous due to unknown authorship. It is in the public domain in the United States as well as countries and areas where the copyright terms of anonymous or pseudonymous works are 104 years or less since publication.
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